Animals are important to Sharon von Wietersheim. Born in America, she has four dogs and is the founder of an animal welfare organization. She also deals with them professionally: on May 26, her horse film “Immenhof – The Great Promise” will be in the cinemas, it is already the second update of the family film series known from the 1950s. The filmmaker lives near Munich. This week she commutes between cinema and animal clinic, interviews, restaurants and dog park.
Monday: Bonny and her buddies
The little Jack Russell bitch Bonny is the smartest in von Wietersheim’s dog troop. She needs a lot of care because she has only one eye and is diabetic.
(Photo: Rich and Famous Film)
Oh god Monday! First a cup of Earl Gray tea with soy milk, otherwise nothing works. Like every day, I take care of my four dogs Toto, Jelly, Fynn and Bonny. The little Jack Russell dog Bonny is the smartest. Unfortunately, she only has one eye and suffers from diabetes, so she gets insulin shots in the morning and evening. I am currently working on a film that will be shot in Canada in the spring. Surrounded by my four-legged friends, I write the screenplay, I rummage through illustrated books and research film locations on the Internet. In the afternoon we go into the forest with the dogs, these walks clear my head and ground me.
Tuesday: Crazy about horses
On May 26th, “The Big Promise”, the second part of the “Immenhof” film series about the holiday farm and its pony-loving girls, will be released in cinemas.
(Photo: Rich and Famous Film, Leonine Studios)
My new film will be in cinemas soon, there is still a lot to do. Zoom meetings are coming up, I watch the clips for cinema, TV and social networks, final sound and color corrections are made. My partner and I take the dogs to the English Garden, the park is Munich’s largest dog park. Unique and beautiful. A few years ago I was shooting here and at dawn I had a Steinway grand piano set on the foggy meadow. On the way home we get the best salad in town at “Gegenüber” on Barer Straße.
Wednesday: Sweets after the clinic
I am currently reading the book “The Wisdom of Old Dogs” by Elli H. Radinger. The author used to fly to Yellowstone National Park several weeks a year for work. When her bitch got old, she stopped these trips until further notice. I too have decided to dedicate the year to my dogs, not to film and only to write. I don’t know how much time I have left with Bonny, but this time with her and her buddies is the most precious thing to me. You have priority. Today we have an appointment at the animal clinic, later I’ll get some cheesecake from “Alofs” on Hans-Sachs-Strasse.
Thursday: Sport and a classic
To this day, the semi-biographical novel “Who disturbs the nightingale” about the racial problems in America in the 1930s is one of the most widely read books. With Gregory Peck (left) in the leading role, the work was also made into a film and won three Oscars.
(Photo: imago/United Archives)
The day begins with exercise, I sit down on my “Water Rower” rowing machine. It takes a lot of effort for me every time, but afterwards you feel better. Unfortunately, one forgets again and again. Then we continue with the script writing. It is an adaptation of a novel about a girl who is a violin virtuoso – and who experiences burnout due to her mother’s high expectations. In the evening we watch a classic with Gregory Peck at home: “Who disturbs the nightingale”. What a topical issue, what a great man!
Friday: Creations by Dior
The film “Haute Couture” tells of the gap between the banlieue and the “J’adore Dior” Paris – and how to bridge it (scene with Nathalie Baye and Lyna Khoudri).
(Photo: Roger Do Minh/Happy Entertainment)
We have an appointment for Bonny at a holistic therapy practice. Anything you can do, we want to do for you. Then we go up to the Keltenschanze in Utting am Ammersee, where you have a wonderful view over the lake and the surrounding area. If few people are out and about, we let the dogs run free. On the way back we get Marsala curry from the Indian shop around the corner, “Little India”. At home we work again, in the evenings we go to the cinema. I still want to see “Haute Couture”, a French film that shows, among other things, how artistically and lovingly every creation of the fashion house Dior is made. Craftsmanship in perfection.
Saturday: Live appropriately
Around 320 animals have found refuge at the Osterseehof, a sanctuary belonging to Gut Aiderbichl in Iffeldorf, including a few donkeys.
(Photo: Manfred Neubauer)
We were able to save 16 million liters of water, a ton of meat and 14,000 kilos of CO2 in our “Immenhof” film adaptation. I will talk about this today with one of my leading actors, Heiner Lauterbach, at Gut Aiderbichl in Iffeldorf. The editors of a television program invited us here. Around 320 animals have found refuge here, they are allowed to live in a manner appropriate to their age. There are horses, cows, sheep, pigs, donkeys, dogs, cats, a camel – each of them is a unique creature. Heiner is a wonderful interview partner, we will certainly also be talking about “green shooting” – that is, about how everyone can do their part to protect the environment.
Sunday: Browsing for antiques
The Keferloh flea market and antique market takes place every first Sunday of the month on the Keferloh estate in the municipality of Grasbrunn near Munich.
(Photo: imago)
Up until three months ago, I also worked through the weekends. After Bonny got sicker and I noticed that I was also very exhausted, I changed that. Now applies: “No more work on weekends!” Every first Sunday of the month I visit the antique market in Keferloh, where I look for antique mocha cups, preferably from Limoges or Meissen. But today I’ll sleep in: I’m happy if I don’t have anything to do! Then I listen to my Spotify lists or spend hours browsing through art books, from Michelangelo to Jean-Michel Basquiat. But then it goes out again, with the dogs to Lake Starnberg. There we admire the sunset with hopefully nice weather and a sundowner.
Born in Georgia, USA, Sharon von Wietersheim came to Germany with her parents at the age of two. She started her professional career as an assistant director at the Munich Residenztheater, soon after she was acting in smaller roles in front of the camera. She has been working as an author and director since the early 1990s, she has her own production company and produces for the cinema (“Immenhof”, “Workaholic”) and for television (“The Little Household”, “The Time You Call Life”).